U.S. patent number 7,620,162 [Application Number 10/928,338] was granted by the patent office on 2009-11-17 for methods, systems and computer program products for monitoring service usage.
This patent grant is currently assigned to AT&T Intellectual Property I.L.P.. Invention is credited to Jeffrey A. Aaron, Jun-Gang Alin.
United States Patent |
7,620,162 |
Aaron , et al. |
November 17, 2009 |
Methods, systems and computer program products for monitoring
service usage
Abstract
Monitoring criteria is received that corresponds to a usage
quantity for a plurality of services. Each of the plurality of
services is provided over ones of a plurality of different
communication systems. Actual service usage information is received
for the plurality of services. The actual service usage information
and the monitoring criteria are compared. An electronic
notification message is sent when the monitoring criteria for one
or more of the plurality of services is satisfied.
Inventors: |
Aaron; Jeffrey A. (Atlanta,
GA), Alin; Jun-Gang (Duluth, GA) |
Assignee: |
AT&T Intellectual Property
I.L.P. (N/A)
|
Family
ID: |
35943072 |
Appl.
No.: |
10/928,338 |
Filed: |
August 27, 2004 |
Prior Publication Data
|
|
|
|
Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
|
US 20060045245 A1 |
Mar 2, 2006 |
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
379/111;
379/32.04; 379/32.01; 379/121.02; 379/112.08; 370/352 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04M
15/73 (20130101); H04W 4/24 (20130101); G06Q
30/0267 (20130101); G06Q 30/0269 (20130101); G06Q
30/0283 (20130101); G06Q 30/04 (20130101); H04M
3/36 (20130101); H04M 15/00 (20130101); H04M
15/41 (20130101); H04M 15/44 (20130101); H04M
15/49 (20130101); H04M 15/58 (20130101); H04M
15/70 (20130101); H04L 43/0876 (20130101); H04L
12/14 (20130101); H04M 15/67 (20130101); H04M
15/8257 (20130101); H04W 4/12 (20130101); H04M
15/745 (20130101); H04M 2215/0104 (20130101); H04M
2215/0108 (20130101); H04M 2215/0164 (20130101); H04M
2215/0188 (20130101); H04M 2215/46 (20130101); H04M
2215/70 (20130101); H04M 2215/7072 (20130101); H04W
88/02 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
H04M
15/00 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;379/32.01,88.11,88.12,111,112.01,112.04,112.06,112.07,114.01,114.13,114.17,121.01,121.02,121.03,121.04,122,127.02,32.04,112.08
;405/405-408,412.2,414.1,418 ;370/352 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Tieu; Binh K
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Myers Bigel Sibley &
Sajovec
Claims
That which is claimed:
1. A method for monitoring the usage of a plurality of services,
the method comprising: receiving monitoring criteria corresponding
to a usage quantity for a plurality of services, each of the
plurality of services being provided over ones of a plurality of
different communication systems; receiving from a communications
device actual service usage information for the plurality of
service from a communications device wherein the monitoring
criteria is received by a usage monitoring system; comparing the
service usage information and the monitoring criteria; and sending
an electronic notification message when the monitoring criteria for
one or more of the plurality of services is satisfied, wherein the
notification message includes a promotional message comprising
information about payment plans for the plurality of services when
the monitoring criteria is satisfied and the information about
payment plans is based on the service usage information wherein the
electronic notification is sent by the usage monitoring system to a
user device when the user initiates a service and before additional
charges for services are incurred, the monitoring criteria is an
amount of service usage for one or more of a plurality of users
comprising a user group, and the method further comprises
designating at least one of the plurality of users in the user
group as an administrative user and accepting a change to the
monitoring criteria if the change is received from the
administrative user of the user group wherein the promotional
message is sent to the administrative user.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic notification
message comprises at least one of an email message, a text message,
and a page to a paging device.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the service usage information is
substantially real-time actual service usage information.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of communication
systems comprises two or more of a packet switched network, a
wireless telecommunications network, and a public switched
telephone network (PSTN).
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitoring criteria
corresponds to a predetermined billing cycle, and the real-time
actual service usage information corresponds to service usage
during the predetermined billing cycle.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification message includes
the real-time actual service usage information for at least one of
the plurality of users in the user group.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification message includes
the real-time actual service usage information for at least one of
the plurality of services.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification message includes
information concerning a stoppage of services based on a satisfied
monitoring criteria.
9. The method of claim 8, further comprising sending a request to a
service provider to stop providing services based on the satisfied
monitoring criteria.
10. The method of claim 8, further comprising automatically
discontinuing one or more of the plurality of services based on the
satisfied monitoring criteria.
11. The method of claim 8, further comprising receiving a request
from a user to continue services and continuing service based on
the user request.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein the substantially real-time
actual service usage information is received from a plurality of
billing systems.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein a cost for the plurality of
services is determined based on a predetermined one of a plurality
of payment plans, the method comprising automatically selecting
another one of the plurality of payment plans for a user when one
or more of the monitoring criteria is satisfied.
14. A combined usage monitoring system for monitoring the usage of
a plurality of services, the system comprising: a communication
module configured to receive monitoring criteria corresponding to a
usage quantity for a plurality of services, each of the plurality
of services being provided over ones of a plurality of different
communication systems; a monitor module configured to receive
actual service usage information for the plurality of services and
to compare the service usage information and the monitoring
criteria; and a notification module configured to send an
electronic notification message when the monitoring criteria for
one or more of the plurality of services is satisfied, wherein the
notification message includes a promotional message comprising
information about payment plans for the plurality of services when
the monitoring criteria is satisfied and the information about
payment plans is based on the service usage information wherein the
electronic notification is sent when the user initiates a service
and before additional charges for services are incurred, the
monitoring criteria is an amount of service usage for one or more
of a plurality of users comprising a user group, and the monitor
module is configured to designate at least one of the plurality of
users in the user group as an administrative user and to accept a
change to the monitoring criteria if the change is received from
the administrative user of the user group, wherein the promotional
message is sent to the administrative user.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein the electronic notification
message comprises at least one of an email message, a text message,
and a page to a paging device.
16. A computer program product for monitoring the usage of a
plurality of services, the computer program product comprising a
computer-readable storage medium comprising program code embodied
in the computer-readable storage medium, the computer program code
comprising: computer program code that is configured to receive
monitoring criteria corresponding to a usage quantity for a
plurality of services, each of the plurality of services being
provided over ones of a plurality of different communication
systems; computer program code that is configured to receive actual
service usage information for the plurality of services; computer
program code that is configured to compare the service usage
information and the monitoring criteria; and computer program code
that is configured to send an electronic notification message when
the monitoring criteria for one or more of the plurality of
services is satisfied, wherein the notification message includes a
promotional message comprising information about payment plans for
the plurality of services when the monitoring criteria is satisfied
and the information about payment plans is based on the service
usage information wherein the electronic notification is sent when
the user initiates a service and before additional charges for
services are incurred, the monitoring criteria is an amount of
service usage for one or more of a plurality of users comprising a
user group, and the computer program code further comprises
computer program code that is configured to designate at least one
of the plurality of users in the user group as an administrative
user and computer program code that is configured to accept a
change to the monitoring criteria if the change is received from
the administrative user of the user group, wherein the promotional
message is sent to the administrative user.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to data processing systems,
and more particularly, to data services provided to a user.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Services, such as telecommunications or other data services, may be
billed on a "pay-per-use" basis. For example, a customer may be
charged a rate per minute for the use of long distance telephone
service or an amount may be charged for a given number of minutes
of use. Video or audio media may be obtained by a customer for a
fee based on the quantity of the media that is received. Customers
are typically billed periodically for such services, such as with
monthly billing. In order to monitor the usage of a particular
service, the customer may track the amount of service that he or
she uses. If the customer does not track the amount of services
used or is incorrect about the amount of services used, the
customer may receive a bill for services that is larger than
expected at the end of a billing cycle.
It may be difficult or inconvenient for a customer to accurately
track how much service is being used. Customers may also receive
several types of services through more than one communications
system or service provider. The number of services received by a
customer can add to the difficulty in tracking the monetary charges
that the customer can expect at the end of a billing cycle. In
addition, several members of a household or business unit may share
the same billing account, and tracking usage by several different
members of the household or business may require coordination
between members that is difficult or not practical.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to embodiments of the present invention, methods,
systems, and computer program products provide monitoring of the
usage of a plurality of services. In some embodiments, monitoring
criteria corresponding to a usage quantity for at least one
communication service is received. Service usage information for
the service is received. The service usage information and the
monitoring criteria are compared. An electronic notification
message is sent when the monitoring criteria for one or more of the
plurality of services is satisfied.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, monitoring
criteria is received that corresponds to a usage quantity for a
plurality of services. Each of the plurality of services is
provided over ones of a plurality of different communication
systems. Actual service usage information is received for the
plurality of services. The actual service usage information and the
monitoring criteria are compared. An electronic notification
message is sent when the monitoring criteria for one or more of the
plurality of services is satisfied.
As will further be appreciated by those of skill in the art,
although described above primarily with reference to method
aspects, the present invention may be embodied as methods,
apparatus/systems and/or computer program products. Other systems,
methods, and/or computer program products according to embodiments
will be or become apparent to one with skill in the art upon review
of the following drawings and detailed description. It is intended
that all such additional systems, methods, and/or computer program
products be included within this description, be within the scope
of the present invention, and be protected by the accompanying
claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of systems according to embodiments of
the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the combined usage monitoring system
of FIG. 1; and
FIGS. 3-4 are flowcharts illustrating operations according to
embodiments of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter
with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which illustrative
embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may,
however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be
construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather,
these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be
thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the
invention to those skilled in the art. Like numerals refer to like
elements throughout.
According to some embodiments of the present invention,
substantially real-time actual service usage information for a
plurality of services can be monitored. The service usage
information can be compared to monitoring criteria. The monitoring
criteria can be a set of preferences and/or usage threshold levels.
When the monitoring criteria for one or more of the services is
satisfied, a notification message can be sent to the user.
Accordingly, a plurality of services that may be provided over a
plurality of different communications systems may be monitored.
Notification that the monitoring criteria has been satisfied may be
automatically sent to a user. Users of the provided services may
receive information about the amount of services used to reduce the
risk of receiving unexpected charges for services.
As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, the present
invention may be embodied as methods, systems and/or computer
program products. Accordingly, the present invention may take the
form of an entirely hardware embodiment, or an embodiment combining
software and hardware aspects all generally referred to herein as a
"circuit" or "module." Furthermore, the present invention may take
the form of a computer program product on a computer-usable storage
medium having computer-usable program code embodied in the medium.
Any suitable computer readable medium may be utilized including
hard disks, CD-ROMs, optical storage devices or magnetic storage
devices.
The present invention is described below with reference to
flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, systems
and computer program products according to embodiments of the
invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart
illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in
the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be
implemented by computer program instructions. These computer
program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general
purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable
data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the
instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or
other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for
implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or
block diagram block or blocks.
These computer program instructions may also be stored in a
computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other
programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular
manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable
memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction
means which implement the function/act specified in the flowchart
and/or block diagram block or blocks.
The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a
computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a
series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or
other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented
process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or
other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the
functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram
block or blocks.
FIG. 1 illustrates systems according to various embodiments of the
present invention. As illustrated, a data information system 100
includes a plurality of communication systems, such as a packet
switched network 110, a wireless communications network 120 and a
public switched telephone network (PSTN) 130. The packet switched
network 110, the wireless communications network 120 and the public
switched telephone network 130 communicate with one or more user
devices 104a-104c to provide various communications services. The
packet switched network 110, the wireless communications network
120 and the public switched telephone network 130 also communicate
with a packet switched usage monitoring system 112, a wireless
network usage monitoring system 122, and a PSTN usage monitoring
system 132, respectively. A combined usage monitoring system 150 is
in communication with the monitoring systems 112, 122, and 132 and
one or more of the user devices 104a-104c.
Accordingly, information about substantially real-time actual
service use by one or more of the user devices 104a-104c can be
monitored by the monitoring systems 112, 122, and 132 and received
by the combined usage monitoring system 150. It should be
understood that "real-time" actual service use includes information
that is substantially or near real-time. The combined usage
monitoring system 150 can include monitoring criteria, such as
usage threshold amounts. The users of the user devices 104a-104c
may be notified by the combined usage monitoring system 150 when
one or more of the monitoring criteria is satisfied.
Although the data information system 100 in FIG. 1 is illustrated
with respect to the packet switched network 110, the wireless
communications network 120, and the PSTN 130, any one or more
different communications systems may be used. Additional
communication networks may also be provided. It should be
understood that a single user device 104a may be used, or any
number of user devices 104a-104c may be used. The user devices
104a-104c can communicate with one or more of the networks 110,
120, and 130, the combined usage monitoring system 150, and/or
other ones of the devices 104a-104c directly or indirectly via
other devices, systems, or networks. Any suitable user device may
be used for the user devices 104a-104c, including mobile
communications devices, desktop computers, landline telephones,
modem-enabled devices, set top boxes, cable-enabled television
sets, or other devices that can access a communications system.
Mobile communications devices can include radiotelephones or other
handheld devices, such as a personal wirelessly enabled digital
assistants (personal data assistants (PDAs), such as Palm Pilot.TM.
or a Pocket PC.TM.), cellular telephones and/or data terminals,
pagers, wireless messaging devices (such as a Blackberry.TM.
wireless handheld device), laptop computers, wireless enabled
laptop computers, other mobile communications devices and/or
combinations thereof.
Usage monitoring systems, such as the packet switched usage
monitoring system 112, the wireless network usage monitoring system
122, and the PSTN usage monitoring system 132, can be configured to
monitor usage of one or more services provided over one or more of
the networks 110, 120, and 130, respectively, to the user devices
104a-104c. The services provided to the user devices 104a-104c can
include data services, such as network access services or media
services that are accessible via a network. The services can
include downloadable or streamlined electronic audio media,
electronic video media, computer network services (e.g., Internet
access or email), wireless computer network services, telephone
services via a wireless network, video conferencing services,
and/or telephone services via a PSTN. The usage monitoring systems
112, 122, and 132 can monitor one or more types of services
provided via the corresponding networks 110, 120, and 130.
Although the networks 110, 120, and 130 are illustrated in FIG. 1
as each having a corresponding usage monitoring system 112, 122,
and 132 associated therewith, it should be understood that more
than one usage monitoring system may be associate with a single
network. For example, the packet switched usage monitoring system
112 can monitor the usage as an amount of access to the packet
switched network 110 (e.g., the amount of time that a user is
logged onto the Internet), and another usage monitoring system can
monitor how much of a different service is used during the access
period, such as how many audio or video files (e.g., MP3 or JPEG
files) are downloaded. Moreover, although the usage monitoring
systems 112, 122, and 132 are illustrated as part of the data
information system 100, the usage monitoring systems 112, 122, and
132 can be carried out at least in part by one or more of the user
devices 104a-104c.
A single user can access several different communication services,
including data services, from one or more of the devices 104a-104c.
Various services can be received at the same time. For example, a
user can receive Internet access services at the device 104a and
the user can download audio files via the device 104a using a
different service while the device 104a is connected to the
Internet. More than one of the devices 104a-104c can be used at the
same time. For example, a user could use one of the devices
104a-104c (e.g., a computer) to access the packet switched network
110, such as to view a webpage, at the same time as the user uses
another one of the devices 104a-104c (e.g., a cellular telephone)
to access the wireless communications network 120, such as to
conduct a telephone call.
More than one user can be associated with the same billing account
and the services used by each of the users can be monitored. The
cumulative services used by all of the users can be monitored
and/or the service usage can be monitored for each of the users
separately. The devices 104a-104c may each be associated with a
single user or the users may use the devices 104a-104c
interchangeably, for example, using a user identifier or account to
identify which one of the users is using services. For example, one
user could be receiving downloadable audio files over the packet
switched network 110 from one of the devices 104a-104c while
another user could be sending electronic pictures over the wireless
communications network 120 from another one of the devices
104a-104c.
Communication services may be provided to one or more of the user
devices 104a-104c by one or more service providers. For example, a
service provider may provide the user device 104a access to the
packet switched network 110. The service provider may, for example,
provide Internet service via a digital subscriber line (DSL) or a
cable modem. The amount of time that the user device 104a accesses
the packet switched network 110 may be monitored by the packet
switched usage monitoring system 112 as a measurement of service
use. The user device 104a can obtain other services from the same
or a different service provider during its access to the packet
switched network 110. For example, the user device 104a can access
audio or video media (e.g., MP3 and JPEG files) from a particular
website provided by another service provider that provides this
service over the packet switched network 110. Another service
provider may provide access to the packet switched network 110. As
described above, the usage of services via the packet switched
network 110 can be monitored by the packet switched usage
monitoring system 112 or by other usage monitoring systems.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the combined usage monitoring system 150
can be a data processing system that includes a memory module 160,
a controller module 170, and I/O data ports 180. The controller
module 170 may be an operating system suitable for use with a data
processing system, such as Windows95, Windows98, Windows2000,
Windows NT, Windows ME, Windows XP from Microsoft Corporation,
Cisco IOS, VxWorks, Unix, Linux, OS/2, AIX or System390 from
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, N.Y. Although
the controller module 170 is shown as separate from the memory
module 160, it is to be understood that it may be at least
partially within the memory module 160. The I/O data ports 180 can
be used to transfer information between the combined usage
monitoring system 150 the other usage monitoring systems 112, 122,
and 132 and another computer system, a network, and/or a peripheral
device such as a printer. These components may be conventional
components such as those used in many conventional data processing
systems and may be configured to operate as described herein.
The memory module 160 can include various modules for carrying out
operations according to the present invention. As illustrated in
FIG. 2, the memory module 160 includes a communicator module 162, a
monitor/decider module 164, a database module 166, and a
notification module 168. The communicator module 162 can provide a
user interface for receiving the monitoring criteria from an
administrator or from a user. The monitor/decider module 164 can
monitor the service usage. The notification module 168 can create
and/or send a message, for example, via the communicator module 162
to the user when the monitoring criteria is satisfied. In some
embodiments, the notification module 168 can send the notification
when the user initiates a service, for example, before charges for
services are incurred by the user. The database module 166 can
store information, such as the monitoring criteria, set(s) of rules
to be taken if monitoring criteria are met, and/or actual service
usage information, e.g., as received from the usage monitoring
systems 112, 122, and 124.
Although the combined usage monitoring system 150 is illustrated in
FIGS. 1 and 2 as being separate from the networks 110, 120 and 130,
and the billing systems 112, 122, and 132, operations performed by
the combined usage monitoring system 150 can be performed at least
in part by other modules in the networks 110, 120, and 130, such as
by one of the usage monitoring systems 112, 122, and 132.
Operations according to some embodiments of the present invention
are illustrated with respect to FIGS. 3 and 4. Although such
operations are described with respect to FIGS. 1 and 2, it should
be understood that any suitable device and/or system may be used to
carry out the operations described herein.
With reference to FIGS. 1-3, the combined usage monitoring system
150 can receive monitoring criteria corresponding to a usage
quantity for a plurality of services (Block 200). For example, the
user can send monitoring criteria to the usage monitoring system
150, such as from the user device 104a. The communicator module 162
of the monitoring system 150 can provide a user interface, such as
a web page, through which the user can input the monitoring
criteria. Each of the services can be provided over one of a
plurality of different communication systems, such as various
services received by the user device 104a through two or more of
the packet switched network 110, the wireless communications
network 120 and/or the public switched telephone network 130.
The combined usage monitoring system 150 can receive substantially
real-time actual service usage information from a plurality of
usage monitoring systems (Block 210). For example, the
monitor/decider module 164 and/or the database module 166 can
receive substantially real-time usage information from the packet
switched usage monitoring system 112, the wireless network usage
monitoring system 122, and/or the PSTN usage monitoring system 132.
The monitor/decider module 164 can compare the real-time actual
service usage information and the monitoring criteria to determine
if the real-time service usage information satisfies the monitoring
criteria (Block 220). The notification module 168 of the combined
usage monitoring system 150 can send a notification message when
the monitoring criteria for one or more of the plurality of
services is satisfied (Block 230). The notification message can be
sent to one of the user devices 104a-104c, for example, by an email
message, a text message (such as on a handheld wireless
communications device or computer terminal, including "pop-up"
windows), an audio indication within an ongoing telephone call,
and/or a page to a pager device. The notification may be sent
automatically without requiring an action by the user. Audio and/or
visual notification messages may be used. In some embodiments, the
notification message includes actual usage information for one or
more of the services, and may indicate remaining balance(s)
associated with an account. Multiple notification messages may also
be sent. In some embodiments, a notification message may also be
sent to a monitoring system or to a provider of a monitored
service. Different notification messages may contain different
information, and may be used for different purposes.
Any suitable monitoring criteria can be used. The monitoring
criteria can be a threshold for an amount of service or service
charge, such as a number of per-use invocations (e.g., number of
media files downloaded), a maximum monthly charge, a number of
minutes of use, or an amount of data (e.g., bytes) transferred. In
some embodiments, multiple threshold levels may be set; for
example, a warning notification message can be sent at a lower
threshold and service may be stopped at a higher threshold. The
monitoring criteria may be defined as a value relative to another
value, such as the previous usage of the customer during a selected
billing period or averaged over a set of billing periods. As
another example, the monitoring criteria for service used by one
member of a household or business entity sharing an account can be
a threshold amount set relative to the usage of another member. The
monitoring criteria can also be based on a minimum or maximum rate
or speed at which the services are used. The monitoring criteria
can also take into account the amount of service being used during
a particular period during a billing cycle. For example, the
monitoring criteria can be a threshold that depends on the amount
of time that has passed during the billing cycle. Thus, the
monitoring criteria can be an absolute amount of service used or an
amount that, for example, increases throughout the billing cycle.
As a specific example, the monitoring criteria can be a threshold
of a predetermined number of units of service accumulated and/or a
predetermined number of units of service per day or week of the
billing cycle. The monitoring criteria can include combined
criteria for more than one type of service or threshold. The amount
of services accumulated may be reset for each billing cycle. The
monitoring criteria can be based on any definable mathematical
formula which incorporates one or more of the above example types,
in any useful combination.
In some embodiments, the monitoring criteria can be based on past
usage patterns. The monitoring criteria can be divided by the
billing period or sub-periods within the billing period. Each
period or sub-period can be categorized and/or the service use
during the period or sub-period. The periods and/or sub-periods can
have different monitoring criteria. For example, if a user
typically uses more services in the first week of the billing cycle
and very few minutes in the last week of the billing cycle, then
the monitoring criteria can correspond to the expected usage.
Warning messages can be provided to give users notification when
they are using services more rapidly, for example, based on the
actual rate of service use.
The monitoring criteria can be an amount of usage for one or more
of the users in a user group, such as a household or business unit
that shares a billing account. In some embodiments, the monitoring
criteria can be an amount of usage associated with one or more of
the devices 104a-104c. The devices 104a-104c can be associated with
particular users in the user group, for example, by being
pre-configured to be so associated with a user or via other
associations such as user identifiers and accounts. One or more of
the users in the user group can be designated as an "administrative
user." When services are used at one of the user devices 104a-104c,
the user device 104a-104c can send an identifier to the appropriate
usage monitoring device 112, 122, and 132, and the service usage
can be associated with a particular one of the user devices
104a-104c and/or a user that is assigned to the device. In some
embodiments, the user can enter a user identifier so that the usage
monitoring devices 112, 122, and 132 can assign the usage to a
particular user. Thus, one user in a user group can use one or more
of the user devices 104a-104c, for instance by logging into their
user account by entering their user identifier and/or password, or
by authenticating themselves via other methods well-known in the
art.
The combined usage monitoring system 150 can be programmed to
accept changes to the monitoring criteria and/or to override an
action triggered by the satisfaction of one of the monitoring
criteria based on instructions from an authorized user, such as an
administrative user in a user group. The administrative user can
use a password or user identification, or other acceptable
authentication method, to notify the combined usage monitoring
system 150 that the instructions are authorized for acceptance.
The notification message can include information about the
real-time actual service usage and/or the monitoring criteria. The
substantially real-time actual service usage information can
include information about a single user, a sum of the usage of a
group of users, such as a group of users sharing the same account,
or a sub-group of those users, or the individual usage amounts for
a group of users. The actual usage information can include amounts
for ones of the plurality of services or a sum of the usage
corresponding to one or more of the services. The notification
message can include a command or request for subsequent denial of
service and/or notification of service stoppage.
The notification message can include information about actions that
may be taken based on the satisfaction of the monitoring criteria.
For example, the notification message can inform the user that one
or more of the services may be discontinued or temporarily
discontinued for a period of time. In some embodiments, a
notification may be a request for a particular service provider to
deny subsequent service usage with respect to a user group,
sub-group, or individual user.
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the monitoring criteria is
received, for example, by the combined usage monitoring system 150
(Block 300). The monitoring criteria can include an instruction to
stop services if the user uses more than a predetermined amount of
service. If, for example, the monitor decider module 164,
determines that the real-time service usage information satisfies
the monitoring criteria, e.g., by surpassing an amount of service
use (Block 310), then the notification module 168 sends a message
to the user notifying the user that service will be stopped (Block
320).
In some embodiments, the user (or one or more of the users in a
user group) may have the authority to override a service stoppage.
If the communicator module 162 receives authorization to continue
services, then the service is not discontinued (Block 330). If
authorization is not received, then one or more of the services are
discontinued (Block 340). The services may be permanently
discontinued, or services may resume after a period of time or at
the beginning of the next billing cycle. The services may be
stopped by automatically disabling a service account, or by
transmitting a message or command to a service provider to stop
providing services to the user.
Although the notification message is described herein as including
information about actual service usage or service stoppages, other
information may be included in the notification message. For
example, advertisements or promotions for service billing plans may
be automatically sent to selected users, such as users who exceed a
threshold of service use or users who use below a threshold of
service use. Users may also receive advertisements or promotions
for additional services in the notification message. More than one
notification message may be sent.
Other actions may also be taken if the actual service usage
satisfies the monitoring criteria. For example, when the actual
service usage reaches a threshold amount, the user may be
temporarily or indefinitely moved to a new billing plan. Some
service providers may provide services based on the amount of
service used, e.g., a rate for some predetermined amount of service
and a higher or lower amount for service exceeding the
predetermined amount. Thus, users may be charged different amounts
based on a particular service billing plan. The user may be
automatically moved to a new billing plan or the user may receive
information regarding billing plan options that may be more
economical based on the user's actual service.
In the drawings and specification, there have been disclosed
certain embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms
are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only
and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention
being set forth in the following claims.
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